Danganstuck: The Fall of Hope's Peak
by Lady Homestuck
Summary: Karkat Vantas, a SHSL Movie Critic, is accepted into one of the most exclusive schools in the country, possibly the whole world. It was said that anyone who attends this school is destined for success. However, Karkat could never have guessed that by going to this school, his ordinary life would perish and become something truly... despairing...
1. Prologue

**Good afternoon, fellow readers! I'm sure you have all received the grim news at this point- unfortunately, Homestuck is going on a Gigapause, and it is absolutely... _Despairing..._**

**For a while, I have been wanting to write DanganStuck for a while now, and I figured that while on the hiatus, now would be a perfect time! A distraction, if you may. **

**If you have not read Dangan Ronpa, or played the game, do not fret! This is merely a Homestuck version of it, and it will be very close to the actual story of Dangan Ronpa, and you can easily find the LP of it if you wish to read the original! However, this story will stand on it's own, with a slightly different plotline since it uses different characters and such. **

**Anywho, I hope you enjoy~ Pairings will vary among the story. **

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That huge school building was built on a prime lot of real estate in the very center of the city, as if it were the center of the world itself.

Hope's Peak Academy.

The academy was very exclusive, aspiring to gather some of the most elite and excelling students from all over the country in order to exploit their talents for the betterment of the world. It was said that anyone who graduated from such a school would guarantee success in life.

This school held hundreds of years of history, legendary for sending its top students into leading roles in every professional field imaginable, time after time. Over and over, through the mouths of many, this school was built to bring "hope" to our country, carrying it's future on their shoulders. This earned the school the title of "Academy of Hope."

To be accepted into Hope's Peak, there are two qualifications:

First, you must be enrolled in high school.

Second, you must excel in your area of expertise.

Without an invite, it was next to impossible to get into this school. The school itself has to come to you, so don't go around thinking it's as easy to get into as any other high school. I often wondered why I am here right now; standing before the large iron gates that separated Hope's Peak from the rest of the world.

You may think this information is pointless and downright stupid, but I digress. I had always dreamt about coming to this school since the day I uttered my first word, and now that I am only a few steps away from that dream, I don't know what the fuck I'm supposed to be thinking.

My name is Karkat Vantas. How I ended up at this school, I will never fucking know. My invitation had stated that it was because of my title, a Super High School Level Movie Critic. It wasn't much of a talent- after all, all I had to do was explain why the movie was good, or explain why it was fucking terrible. Apparently, some people labeled my critiques as a talent, and now I stood at the gates of the most elite schools in the country. Although I should be elated, I couldn't help but still find doubt in myself. Getting in here as a Super High School Level Luck seemed more plausible then critiquing romantic comedies.

Even so, I pushed the gate open. For a split second, I felt the coldness of the metal touch my sweating palms before it slid open with ease. I inhaled and stepped inside, exhaling as I made it through the tall gates. My deep breath calmed my nerves a bit as I walked down the concrete walk leading to the entrance.

Along the way, I began thinking about what life here was going to be like. For me, probably not so good. By my appearance, I looked like an ordinary student. I don't have the best personality; I wasn't good at sports- I'm only here for a few choice words on the creations others have made. Other than that, I have no special abilities, nor any weird mutant powers that I hear about some of the students of Hope's Peak having. The only mutant thing about me was my white hair and red eyes. I covered up my hair with black dye, but I never did anything about my eyes. My older brother, Kankri, would throw a fit if I completely covered my albino characteristics.

Stupid SHSL Preacher.

I started to wonder about the other students, and more specifically my classmates. There is so much speculation about them that someone had created a special thread on the school website so others could gawk at them. As part of my preparation though, I peeked on through, and immediately I found that every one of them was a "Super High School Level" that reached far beyond the rest.

For example, a girl was emitted into the academy as a fashion designer. She was the youngest living fashion designer the world has ever seen, and you can see her designs worn by everyone, including the celebrities you see walking about the big carpet on their big events.

Another was a guy, as famous engineer. It was said that he once built another guy a working pair of legs after an accident he had, just from his own garage. This kid was also well known for his many well-functioning robots, although he never shared his secrets with the scientists who nearly tore down his door for even a glimpse of his work.

The girl admitted as a "Super High School Level Attorney" was one of the best in the world, always able to find justice in the name of all "evil-doing." This girl was known as the "Blind Justice," due to a birth defect that she never let bring her down.

In addition, there was a "Super High School Level Medium," a "Super High School Level Hacker," a "Super High School Level Animal Tamer," a "Super High School Level Huntress," and so on.

Every one of them was spectacular, and also an asshole. Assholes who made me realize my short-comings at a much greater scale.

Taking one last deep breath, I looked at the acceptance letter within my hands. It told me that "_New Students were to gather at the entrance hall at 8am._" I stuffed the letter back into my pocket and opened the large entrance doors. I took a step inside, and I immediately noticed that no one else was here. Not a single student had arrived yet. Fantastic.

I looked at the clock on the clean white walls. 7:10am, fifty minutes before the other students would arrive. I still had a chance to back out, to get out of this school and go back to the shitty hellhole that was my old school. At least I would fit in better there.

I crumpled the letter and tossed it into the trashcan placed next to the front door. I was going to take my leave, until my vision began to blur.

"What the fuck?" I muttered as the room began to spin. I felt my knees collapse, and soon, all I saw was darkness.

That's when it started. The moment my ordinary life came to an end. At that moment, I realized that I wasn't here as a SHSL Movie Critic, but maybe for another, horrid reason that still remains a mystery.

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**Chapter 1 will take place either later today, or tomorrow. Either way, please review (-w-)**


	2. Chapter 1

***Phew* Finally finished the chapter! After several checks, here you all are~**

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I did not know how much time had passed when I finally woke up. My head throbbed, and I found myself face down on a school desk with my head buried in my folded arms. I lifted my head, rubbing my temples with my hands as I tried to relax myself.

"Hey guys! He's awake!" I heard a girl's voice exclaim. I looked up, and I found a pair of bright green eyes staring down at me.

"Are you okay?" The girl says, tipping her head to the side. I was startled by the sudden face, and I ended up falling out of my desk. I slowly started to get back up when I heard various other footsteps rushing up next to me.

"Give him some space," I heard another woman utter among the other voices.

"I'm okay, Jesus fuck," I muttered as I stood up. I felt a hand upon my shoulder.

"Are you sure? That did not look like a very pleasant fall," I heard. I turned around, and was greeted by a pale face. She was my age, by the looks of it, and she had short brown hair that was cut in a fashionable way. She looks at me with concerned green eyes, a lovely shade of jade compared to the olive-green I had met when I had awoken.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Who the fuck are you?" I muttered. I might have come off too rudely there, although at this point all I wanted was an answer.

"I am Kanaya, Kanaya Maryam," She says as she holds out a delicate hand. "And you are?" I studied her for a small moment, and I knew where I had recognized her from. She was the fashion designer I had read about earlier ago, and was well-known throughout the country for her exquisite tastes.

"Karkat Vantas," I said as I shook her hand. "Now, can you tell me what the fuck is going on here?"

"I think that's something we all wish to know," says another guy. I finally look around. The one who had spoken was one of the larger ones of us, not only by being as tall as hell, but by having muscles that looked unnatural for a sixteen year old boy. Beside him was the other girl I had seen with the olive eyes. She was a perky little blonde, with a round, cat-like face that matched the blue cat ears she wore on the top of her head.

I immediately took note that there were sixteen of us in here, all with the same confusion plastered on our faces. I looked around the room, seeing that it was a normal-looking classroom, although now installed with large security cameras that followed our every move. My brows furrowed at one of them as the gleam of the lens took notice of my appearance.

"It would appear that we are prisoners of some sort," Muttered one of the guys. He turned his chin towards the windows behind me, revealing that they were barred shut with heavy sheets of metal. Suddenly I was over-whelmed by the prison-like atmosphere that took place before me.

"Let me guess," He continued. "You stepped foot into the school, blacked out, and proceeded to wake up in this very classroom."

"Wait, _all _of you fell asleep in the entrance hallway?" I said, and I was baffled when every one of them shook their heads. "What the fuck-"

Then another one spoke up. "Man, things get motherfucking stranger by the second, don't they?" My eyes lingered on him for a second, because for some reason, this fucker had a clown thing going on. He had long black hair that stuck upward at every angle imaginable, and his face was coated with various amounts of white and gray make-up to give him his clown-like appearance. His eyes looked as stoned as hell, extending his hand out to me just like Kanaya had a moment ago.

"Well motherfucker, I'm Gamzee Makara," he says. I took note of how his tone waves around his syllables, giving him some sort of whimsical speech, although I doubt this guy can even count past fifteen.

"Super High School Level, uh, Juggalo," he says. I gave him a weird look. I had heard of juggalos before, but I had no idea what they did.

"What the fuck is a juggalo?" I asked. Gamzee took his hand back and shrugged slightly.

"Whatever the motherfuck you want them to be, bro," he answered. I then gave him a harder look, and took two steps back.

"Are we really going to waste our time introducing ourselves to him? We have more important matters to worry about," He was the same one who had spoken to me earlier, informing me about the windows and such.

"Oh Eridan, don't be like that! It's best that we get acquainted right away!" chirps one of the girls as she suddenly jumps before me. "Hello, I'm Feferi Peixes."

I have heard of Feferi before. She was a Super High School Level Heiress, next in line for the Peixes throne. Originally, it was supposed to go to her older sister, Meenah Peixes, but Meenah had decided to live her own life outside of the royal family, leaving Feferi next in line for the crown. Her dark curls bounced all around her, almost as if they were as excited as her personality.

"Nice to, uh, meet you," I manage to say. The guy from before, Eridan, scoffs at me.

"You're speaking to an Heiress with _that _kind of informality?" I hear him mutter. I would have said something to him, although Feferi's glare seemed to beat me to it. With a hesitant look at the heiress, he turns to me.

"Alright, fine. I'm Eridan Ampora," he says. I overlooked his appearance a few times. Hipster glasses, hipster scarf, hipster pants… everything about him were hipster, especially the long purple stripe in his dark hair.

"Before you even ask, I am a Super High School Level Scientist, and don't you even think of calling me a magician," he growls. I raised a brow at him before I remembered his conflicting titles. Apparently, he was always labeled as a magician for his illusion and tricks during his childhood, although he denied the magic. He stated that magic does not really exist, and his illusions were created by science, hence why he refers to himself as a scientist.

"Oh, whatever Eridan," mutters one of the other guys. Eridan turned to him angrily.

"What was that, Sollux?" he spat. Immediately Feferi and Kanaya stood in the middle, telling them both to calm down. I turned away from the four of them, continuing to introduce myself to the rest of them.

"I'm sorry about scaring you before. I was told to check on you since you were the only one still asleep," the blonde girl from before stated as she played with her fingers. "I'm Nepeta Leijon, by the way." Nepeta was a famous huntress, much like her mother. I always heard stories about her and her amazing "catches" as they would call them, due to her cat-like playfulness. She looks a lot less fierce in person as she does on a television screen.

"Whatever, it's fine," I mumbled. My head was still a bit achy from the fall. As we finished introducing each other, the burly kid next to her walks up to me, holding out his sweaty hands.

"Equius Zahhak. Pleased to meet your acquaintance," he says as a few drops of sweat drip down his face. I wrinkled my nose at his stench, just as Nepeta threw a soggy towel at him.

"Come on Equius, your getting your gross sweat all over him!" she scolds, pursing her lips at him. Equius clears his throat, delicately dabbing his forehead with his towel. Where that piece of soggy ass cotton came from, I don't know.

"I apologize. Nepeta, there is no need to be so rude," he says as he looks at the tiny huntress. She crosses her arms playfully.

"I can't help it if you're going to be all smelly around the movie critic," she says. Equius sighs, turning back to me.

"Oh yes, I've hear about you. I loved that critique you did on 'Bolts of Love and Sweat'," he says. For a second, I had no idea what he was talking about, because I never wrote about any critiques. However, I did have a blog a while back where I shared them, although I had less then twenty-five followers on it. I was surprised to hear that the famous Super High School Level Engineer, the one I had mentioned before about the robots and such.

"I didn't think anyone really cared about those," I comment. Equius nodded, giving me a broken smile. To my surprise, it looked as if he had a few teeth knocked out.

"Ah, yes, I was a fan. Although, I was disappointed when I never saw anything about 'My Little Pony.' It's always been one of my favorite series, and I would love to hear what the critic would have to say," he says so casually, as if it was normal for sixteen-year-old boys to watch a movie made for little girls. I gave him a harsh look, and I politely answered-

"Hell. Fucking. No," Nepeta giggled at that, although Equius didn't look as amused.

"Such lewd language," I hear him mutter underneath his breath. I ignored him and continuing on.

"Yuck, now you smell like him," one of the girls snapped as I walk up. She pinched her nose for emphasis, glaring at me with her blue eyes, looking through her black, un-kept bangs.

"Yeah, and you smell like a basket of roses yourself," I answered sharply. She blew a raspberry at me, adjusting her sunglasses a bit. I took note of how they had one of the lens punched out, as if on purpose rather than accident. Either that, or this poor sap couldn't afford a new pair after the first one broke.

"Whatever, shrimp," she says. "Vriska Serket, by the way. Don't wear it out." I remembered Vriska's name from the thread, although she didn't have a specific talent next to her name. All it said was "Super High School Level Luck."

"What kind of dumb ass talent is 'Luck' anyway?" I asked her. She scowled at me.

"The beeeeeeest one, nubby," she said, flicking my forehead.

"Ignore her, Karkles. My step-sister can be a bit of a cow," says the girl next to her. She was pretty, I will admit, having short, red hair that went along well with her red tinted sunglasses. She had a sharp, yet friendly smile as she flashed me her perfect white teeth.

"Terezi Pyrope, harbinger of justice," she says proudly. She was the Super High School Level Attorney I had read about before, and she was no disappointment. She had a strong voice, with a hint of a playful and flirtatious tone in it if I have ever heard one. I nodded, shaking her hand.

"Karkat Van- wait, did you just call me 'Karkles'?" I asked, raising a brow at her. She shrugs, tilting her head towards the next couple of people for me to introduce myself to. I pouted a bit, and with a glare from Vriska, I continued on.

"Stupid hipster," muttered Sollux. "Yeah, yeah, Sollux Captor, famous computer hacker, self-proclaimed idiot keeper." Sollux was a Super High School Level Hacker, and from what I have heard, he is more than deserving of the title. He has been hacking computers ever since he began to decipher computer codes at the age of five. It was also said that he was always at the top of his class, although there was speculation that he might have hacked his school servers. He said he was an idiot's keeper because he has a mentally unstable brother who was older than him, and he was a bit of a handful as stated in Sollux's dismissive tone. Even so, he came off as an asshole.

"Whatever," I muttered. I then felt a pair of cold hands touch the sides of my head.

"What the _fuck?!_" I cried out, waving my hands around as I turned. Behind me was a girl, with long brown curls and a weird veil over her head. She had a creepy smile on her face, folding her hands one another over her stomach as she begins to speak.

"The spirits have leaded us to this meeting, Mr. Vantas," She says, dipping her head slightly at me. "Aradia Megido. My friends have told me that we will be getting much acquainted."

"Uh…" That was all I could muster. I had not heard of this girl, and I don't remember seeing her anywhere on the threads. She tilts her head to the side.

"I apologize- I'm not as well known as the others here. I am a Super High School Level Medium," she answers. I raise a brow at her.

"How the fuck-"

"She's talking about the ghosts, KK," Sollux chimes in. I had no idea how to answer that.

"There are a lot of them in here. It's quite strange. The only place you could find so many is in a cemetery," Aradia continued. Before I could possibly be any more creeped out, I took a bunch of steps back.

"Boy, you look spooked!" Another one of the students said as I turned to him. He looked like a big ass dork at first glance. He had thick, square glasses and messy black hair. His buck teeth were showing as he grinned at me.

"Hi, my name is John," he says, holding out a package of gum towards me. "Do you want a piece? It would calm your nerves."

"No thanks," I mutter. The girl standing beside him rolled her eyes at John.

"You wouldn't want a piece anyway. You try and take one, and it will shock you," she retorts. John laughs, stuffing his joke gum back into his pocket.

"What would you expect from a Super High School Level Prankster, sis?" he says as he tilts his head back proudly. She rolled her eyes, turning to me as she mustered up a smile.

"I'm Jade Harley, the world's best sharp shooter!" Jade was as dorky looking as John. Instead of square glasses, she had large rounded glasses, and long brown hair that she has probably never had cut before in her life. She had large buck teeth like John that stood out proudly when she smiled. I wasn't much for hunting, but I would never forget the story of the young girl found on an island three years ago, where her only companion was a white dog. No one was sure who had given her a gun in the first place, but it was the only way she had managed to survive all those years. She even came back home, where it was discovered her real family was waiting. Still, no one ever knew how she even ended up on the island in the first place.

I excused myself and continued on. Things were only going to get awkward if I continued to stand around like a dumb fuck and try to remember everything I can about these people.

"Hey, uh, I don't think we have, uh, met yet," Another one of the students stammered. He was a tall, yet timid kid. He had thick brown hair, and his fingers played with the whistles that were strung around his neck.

"I'm, uh, Tavros Nitram, by the way," he says, giving me a kind smile. At this point I frowned even more-so then usual. I was getting sick of all the smiles.

"What is your fucking talent, anyway?" I asked, probably a bit too harshly. Tavros looked at me in a surprised way, as if taken back by my language.

"Uh, Super High School Level Animal Trainer?" He says it as if he was unsure of himself. "I always had a special connection with, uh, animals and-"

"Ugh, you sound like the weird ghost girl," I said probably a bit too loudly. Tavros furrowed his thick brows a bit, crossing his arms while he looked away.

"Well, at least it's more interesting than being a movie critic," he whispers so low that I barely even heard it. I wanted to retort until I got a glimpse of his legs. They were made of metal, although they moved like a regular set of legs anyone else had here. With a glance at Equius, I began to wonder if this was the kid he was able to help walk again. I was curious enough to ask, but he was too busy gawking at Aradia to even notice me if I tried.

"Now, was that necessary?" The last girl says as she ceased scribbling in the little black book she had. This whole time she had paid little attention to anyone as she continuously tapped that pencil against her painted black lips either in thought, or scrawling away like she was on a time limit. I knew she was talking about my previous statement to Tavros.

"Who the fuck are you supposed to be?" I asked, deciding to avoid the subject. She looks at me with her dark purple eyes, smirking at me as she did.

"Rose Lalonde. Perhaps you have heard of me before?" she inquires. Of course I knew who she was; Rose Lalonde was a famous author, publishing her first book at the age of eight. About a year ago she had published a new one that was widely popular. I wasn't into horror, so I wasn't one of her active readers, so I couldn't tell you what that last book was about. All I know is that there was a sudden popularity rise for wizards, as well as many people's fears of tentacles.

"This is my brother, Dave," she says, gesturing towards the last guy, who had been standing there taking everything in this entire time. He had bright blonde hair and wore a pair of shades, despite the fact that we were in-fucking-doors. Everything about this guy screamed "douche-bag" as he nods his head at me.

"'sup," he says. I nod my head back, but I don't say much of anything else. Dave was probably as famous as his sister. He was a Super High School level DJ, although I can't tell you much about his music. I wasn't into that rap stuff, but I remember him being the talk of my old school for his "Sick Rhymes" or something along that fucking line.

"Are we done with these petty introductions yet? We have an actual issue at hand here," Eridan snaps, his voice rising above everyone's murmurs. I turned around.

"What fucking issue? I have been doing this for fifteen fucking minutes now, and I haven't gotten any explanation about what the fuck is going on," I snapped, glaring around at everyone. Some of them looked at one another, as if they were unsure of how to answer me.

"Well, dear Karkles," Terezi says with a cheeky grin. "We appear to be locked within the classroom."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Why can't we leave?" I exclaim.

"Because we are _locked in_," Sollux said, emphasizing the last part of his sentence. "The door is locked and the windows are sealed shut. Even the engineer couldn't pry them open."

"It appears that this school was built well suited for someone of my strength," Equius said, a small smile on his face as he ran his fingers through his dampened hair.

"We have all been stuck all up in here, bro," said Gamzee. "Just as motherfucking confused as you are."

At first, I wanted to scream. I ran over to the classroom door and tried to pry it open with my own hands. The handle wouldn't budge, proving to me that we were, in fact, fucking stuck.

"Great. Fucking fantastic," I growl as I kicked the door. Just as I did, there was a loud click. Everything in the room went still for a moment.

"… Did you just…" John was starting, pointing at the door. No one had time to say anything as the speaker went off, and the sound of the announcements came on.

_*Aaaa… Aaaa.. Mike test! Mike test! Is this fucking thing even on? I have an announcement to make!*_

The voice was faint, and very out of place. It was clear it was a male's voice, and he sounded irritated at the poor reception. Nevertheless, I didn't like the sound of this one bit. The speaker went silent for a moment, and so did we. No one was sure what to say at the time.

"Hey, the TV is on!" Feferi exclaims as she points at the TV screen located to the right of the erase board. Most schools I went to didn't have TV's located within the classroom, although I figured they were there due to the school being funded by the government… or something like that, anyway.

The screen suddenly flashes on, and at for a split second we witnessed static. Almost immediately, the screen clears up, and a figure appeared on the screen. Unfortunately, his face was blacked out, and the only notable feature was the colorful clothing worn under his blackened chin.

*_To all new students. We wish to start this school year with an entrance ceremony, and we wish that every one of you gathers at the gymnasium immediately.*_

Then the screen went black, and the door I had previously kicked had slowly creaked open. We all stared into the dark hallway, and no one moved an inch.

"… I'm going on ahead," Dave says, shrugging past me as he heads out. Rose follows quickly behind him, not even bothering to give me a second glance.

"Are you sure we should go?" Nepeta asks. Vriska smirks at her.

"What, are you scared, kitty-cat?" With a flip of her dark hair, she struts out, followed by Kanaya. Nepeta's face scrunched up, but she reluctantly follows Equius as he leaves. One by one, I see many faces heading for the gym. As for myself, I stayed in place, unsure of what I should be doing. This feeling inside of me was much too uneasy for my liking.

"Are we going, or are you going to just block the door?" Terezi says, her nostrils flaring at me. It took me only a moment to realize we were the only ones left, and I was the one in the way of the exit out of that stuffy classroom.

Terezi and I followed close behind the others. We were all looking around, examining the place.

"I never imagined Hope's Peak of being so fucking depressing," I said. There were murmurs of agreement weaved throughout.

"Look over there," Jade exclaims. We all turn out attention. From before, I had recognized this area as the entrance hallway. Only this time, the door was gone, and replaced with a giant metal one. It was like one of those heavy metal doors that banks use to hide all the money, with a combination lock and everything. The most noted feature was the giant guns hanging from the walls, aimed right at the door, as if ready to stop anyone who gets too close.

"I-I can't deal with this. What the hell is all this supposed to be?" Tavros exclaims, barely a stutter in his words. Gamzee patted his shoulder.

"Relax, motherfucker," he says. "It's an entrance party, isn't it? This is all probably some motherfucking prank… or something…"

"That would be one heck of a prank," John says in awe, probably hoping that it was a prank. In an odd way, I hoped Gamzee was right, and that this was probably some sick ass joke from the fucking seniors at this school.

We all continued on, and through the darkened hallways, we eventually came across the gym, just beyond the trophy room placed outside of it.

_Here goes nothing, _I thought as I followed the other students in. It was silent in the gym, with all the lights lit up. Just at the end of the polished wooden floors was a stage, rising above the ground only a few feet. There stood alone podium, and there was no sign of the mysterious announcer anywhere. The first sound we heard was John's sigh of relief.

"See, there is nothing wrong here," He says, as if he's trying to convince himself. Unfortunately for him, that sense of "Nothing is fucking wrong" came to an end as he finished his statement.

Because at that moment, at that exact second, the shadowed figure rises above the podium, smirking at us with a disgusting toothy grin.

"About time you bastards showed up. Let's get this fucking started, shall we?"

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**I promised you all an update, and I gave you one! I hope you all enjoyed~ It was not easy writing this, especially through all of the introductions and such. It got a lot easier after they were all over, and I hope that you all enjoyed what I present you now! I promise another update tomorrow, even if it kills me!  
**

**Until then... Review?**


	3. Chapter 2

**As promised, another chapter~**

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When the figure had appeared out from behind the podium, he had stepped into the light and revealed his identity.

"God… What the fuck?" I muttered as I stared at him. He was a sickly green color, with a bald head and a skeletal-like figure. His cheeks had been covered with bright red swirls, and his suspender-ridden clothes were various shades of green, much like his skin… or whatever the fuck it was. He did not look human, that's for sure.

"Hello, fuckers," he says. "My name is Caliborn, and I am your new headmaster!"

Whatever was happening at this moment before my eyes was nothing I had seen before. Something was definitely wrong here, and I don't think it's a dumb little prank.

"What is that, a puppet?" Aradia asks, tilting her head over.

"An ugly puppet," Sollux muttered quietly.

"I wouldn't know," Terezi blatantly states. The puppet, Caliborn, grits his sharpened teeth at us.

"_First _of all, I am not a fucking puppet!" He growls. "I am CALIBORN, and furthermore, I am your headmaster!"

"Oh my God, I-it's moving!" Tavros says. Vriska smacked the upside of his head.

"Calm down, would you? There's someone moving it with a remote control," she says so surly. Caliborn looked down, sighing as he did.

"Don't make it sound like I'm some fucking toy children can control. I have a control system in me that would make even NASA green with envy," he says.

"Oh my," Equius mutters, dabbing his forehead with a towel as his sweat drips down faster. Everyone around him took a few steps away from him, besides Nepeta. She just wrinkles her nose, but her curious stare remained on Caliborn.

"Ugh, forget this nice person shit," Caliborn whispers. He stands up straight, folding his arms over evilly and he gives us a shit-eating grin. "Stand! Bow! Good morning, bastards!"

"Morning, bro," Gamzee replies. He got a few stares for that.

"Uh, you don't have to reply," Tavros says.

"Let us begin this opening ceremony will surly remember for the rest of your fucking lives," Caliborn begins. "To start, I have a short statement that will regard you bastard's lives. It is said that this school is meant to preserve the hope that is supposedly created by you." He grin widens. "In order to keep that hope, you are to live within the school for the rest of your pitiful lives."

"What?" I exclaimed.

"This is some kind of joke, right?" Vriska asks as she places her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, because this isn't funny, and I would know," John says as he points a thumb back to himself. Caliborn glared at the prankster, and then reached behind the podium with his razor-sharp hands. A split second later, he had a giant machine gun, to which he aimed at John.

"Are you calling me a fucking liar?" Caliborn spat, his finger dancing in front of the trigger. The color from John's face drained away immediately, and he threw his hands up in defeat.

"N-No sir," he squeaks. Caliborn growls, but he lowers his gun.

"I should also let you all know," he continues as if he never had the gun aimed at one of us a second ago. "You will all be completely shut out from the outside world."

"You're talking about the fucking steel plates on the windows and corridors, aren't you?" I said, my words taut. Anger was starting to rise in me as my fists clenched around the ends of my sweater's sleeves. I managed to bit back just a second longer, just to head everything this shithead has to say.

"No matter how much you scream or cry, no one is coming to get you, so you better get fucking used to it," Caliborn finishes. We all looked at one another.

"I am still not sure about this," Rose bravely speaks up. "I mean, spending our entire lives at this school…"

"God, what a bunch of weirdo's," Caliborn continues. "You all came here on your own whim, and now you all want to back out in the middle of the opening ceremony? What a bunch of babies."

"Excuse me?" Vriska snapped.

"This place isn't even impossible to get out of. There is only one way out of here."

"There is?" Feferi says, her voice dripping in excitement. Caliborn's smirk was no more, but now a twisted, evil smile.

"Call it your graduation," he says with his words dripping in venom. "As students of this academy, you are to live a full lifestyle here with order. But in case someone breaks that order, that person alone can leave the school grounds." With the way he was giggling kept everyone uneasy.

"What do you mean by 'breaking order'?" Eridan asks, clenching up a bit. Caliborn was quiet for a mere moment. Then he began to laugh. A sickening, evil laugh that was twisted in every way. A laugh that wasn't meant to belong to a stable person, or being at that.

"The act of killing another person," he says with such sickening excitement. Dead silence follows.

"K-Kill?!" I exclaimed.

"Beating, stabbing, clubbing, be-heading, burning, suffocating, strangling, slaughtering, voo-doo cursing," the monstrosity continues. "The method doesn't matter. 'Only a person who kills someone' can leave.'" He begins to laugh all over again. "Making the world's own hope kill each other… not very hopeful, is it? A lot more, _despairing._"

"Kill each other?" Kanaya exclaims, placing a manicured hand over her mouth.

"That's it! You let us out of here right now, or I'll-"

"Or you'll _what_?" Caliborn challenged me. I grit my teeth, not even caring anymore. I pointed an accusing finger at our so-called "Headmaster."

"Listen here, you obtuse little fuck, I have had enough of this bullshit! I demand you let us go right now, or else I will-" Suddenly, I was yanked backwards by my own shirt collar. The sound of various gunshots as well as screaming filled the gymnasium. I found myself on my ass a second later, staring at the hole-filled gym floor before me. Caliborn was looking at me with a murderous stare, and I couldn't do anything but shake. Terezi stood beside me, taking a guarding stance in front of me.

"The blind justice would like to speak, Mr. Headmaster," She says so calmly, as if everything going on had no effect on her. "I assume that it all doesn't just end in killing one another, am I correct? There obviously has to be some sort of restriction, am I right?" Caliborn rolled his eyes.

"How come only a little _bitch _is the only one able to understand anything here?" he says as he glares around at everyone. "Listen up, bastards. Breaking any rules is extremely forbidden, and I will not tolerate any kind of neglect! There are cameras everywhere, so I can see every little thing you do, and I have punishments ready for any fucker that decides to break them." He glared at me with his final statement.

"That wasn't my question," Terezi stated in an annoyed tone. Caliborn continued to ignore her, and he reached into his colorful pocket, pulling out a bunch of cards.

"These will be your ID cards," he says as he tossed one to everyone. "They will have all the rules, and any additional information you may need. Until next time."

"Wait a second!" I called out, getting onto my feet. However, in a blink of an eye, Caliborn was gone. Eridan glared over at me.

"Will you settle down? You almost got yourself killed once already," he scolded. I glared over at him, matching his stare.

"I will not just 'Settle down'! I can't be the only one who wants to get the fuck out of here!"

"You're not KK, but you are the only one who wants to get yourself killed. You already got shot at once," Sollux says, pointing to the bullet holes in the floor. To that, I kept my mouth shut, biting back any more of my spiteful comments.

"Whoa, they are electronic," I heard John say in awe, as he is already looking at his ID card. I looked down at my own, poking the front of it. Sure enough, it flipped on, immediately showing all sorts of information. My birthday, my blood type, by sex- even showing an animated photo of myself scowling. Although accurate, I was not sure how Caliborn was able to put that together.

"I say we call for a meeting," Terezi starts. Vriska looks over at her.

"Why? So we can continue to scowl at each other?"

"No," Terezi says. "We obviously are in a bad situation, and I feel as though we should sit down and discuss what we are going to do about it. He can't keep us locked in here forever."

"Should we talk right here?" Feferi asked, looking up from her ID card. Dave shakes his head.

"I saw the cafeteria on the way here. We can talk in there," he says, pointing at the gym doors.

"Yeah. Those bullet holes are making me uncomfortable," Equius says, dabbing his head with his towel once again. I scoffed.

"They make _you _uncomfortable," I muttered, slowly following behind everyone as we all piled out. I looked down at my ID card again, and this time I saw the tab at the top right corner labeled "Rules." Reluctantly, I clicked on it, figuring I had better learn the standards this sicko has before anything else.

* * *

_Rules of Hope's Peak_

_The students will live a communal lifestyle within school walls with no time limits. _

_The time between 10pm and 7am is called "Night Time." During Night Time, there are places that are forbidden to enter, so you better not get any ideas. _

_Sleeping is only permitted in the rooms assigned to you in the dormitory area. Falling asleep anywhere else will result in punishment. _

_You can investigate the school as much as you would like. There are no restrictions on what you may or may not look at._

_No violence is permitted against the headmaster, Caliborn. Destruction to the surveillance cameras is also forbidden. _

_A "Culprit" who kills another student may be able to graduate. However, they must not let another student know._

_Additional rules may be added on at anytime._

* * *

**I'm sorry if this all seems kind of rushed. I have no idea how much computer time I will have today. Caliborn is also a hard character to write for (-3-) But nevertheless, I hope you all enjoyed!**

**Please review? I want to know how I'm doing so far.**


	4. Chapter 3

_"Only a student who kills may leave this place."_

Thos words were stuck in my head, haunting me as they echoed. The heavy atmosphere took over us as we went to the cafeteria, no one speaking a single word. We remained silent for only a minute after we reached the large room, each of us taking our seats at the middle table.

For a cafeteria, this place was way to colorful. It had carpeted floors, which surprisingly was void of any kind of food stain for whatever reason, and they shared a bright red checkered pattern that almost hurt to look at. The walls were a bright manila color, which almost looked as if they were just painted.

"Hang on a second," Vriska says. We all came to a halt, turning around to look at her.

"What the fuck do you want?" I asked. She glared at me for a moment, placing her hands on her hips.

"Shouldn't we go investigate this place before we even think about having a meeting?" She starts. "I can't be the only one who's curious about this place."

"I believe she has a point," Kanaya says. We all looked at each other, reluctantly nodding in agreement.

"Alright, then it's settled," Terezi says. "We will investigate whatever we can for now. We will meet back here in an hour, report what we find, and then we will have out meeting."

"Shouldn't we, uh, divide into groups? I don't want to explore this place alone with our headmaster lurking, uh, about," Tavros says, glancing around. John nods in agreement.

"Yeah, I kind of don't either."

"Okay then, we will divide into groups before we-"

"I'm going alone. You people would only slow me down," Vriska states as she cuts off her step-sister. Without another word, she turned around and sauntered off, leaving no room for anyone to object. Terezi groaned in annoyance, glaring in Vriska's direction before turning back to us.

"Alright, everyone partner up and we can get going," she says. With that, everyone began leaving in different directions in small groups, leaving me out of it. I crossed my arms in annoyance.

"Fine, I can go by my fucking lonesome," I growl. Then I felt a petite finger tap my shoulder.

"You can come with Equius and I, Karkat," Nepeta says, smiling at me. I looked at her, and then at then at Equius, who was probably glaring at me through his sunglasses. I was going to tell her no, but they had already begun walking off, and with a sigh, I followed them.

"Where should we investigate first?" Nepeta asks, looking at the both of us. Equius threw his towel over his shoulder.

"I would like to look at that iron door Tavros had pointed out before," he says.

"You mean the entrance hallway?" I asked. He nods, and we walked on.

It wasn't long before we arrived at the entrance hall, standing before that big door.

"Are you sure you want to be messing with that?" I asked, eyeing the guns handing from the ceiling. Equius sniffed.

"It will take more than a few bullets to stop me," he says so surly. "Nepeta, you and Karkat check out the rest of this area.

"Okay," Nepeta says as she scampers off to the other side of the room. I turned around, checking my own side.

There wasn't much to investigate about the entrance hall. All I saw were a few potted plants, some baskets on the counters, and the only thing I could hear were Equius' grunts as he tried to pry the door open. I looked over at Nepeta, who was running over to me.

"Hey Karkitty, come check this out!" She squeaked, urging me to follow her. I gave her a weird look.

"Did you just-" I didn't a chance to finish my sentence when the huntress had grabbed my wrist and yanked me the other direction. I didn't hear Equius behind us, thinking that he was probably going to stick around and try to open that door.

"Look at this," she says in awe, pointing at the metal bars in front of me. Behind the bars was another set of stairs, leading up to a second floor no doubt.

"Is there a switch anywhere?" I asked as I looked at the blonde. Nepeta lowered her head a bit.

"I didn't have a chance to look. I wanted to tell you and Equius first."

"Then don't stand there like a fucking idiot, start looking!" I said as I immediately began to observe the area. Nepeta took no notice to my words, surprisingly, as she began to look around as well. After a few minutes, we came to a result.

"I don't think we can open it yet," Nepeta concluded, looking at me. "We should get back to Equius. He had probably found something by now."

"Or he's still trying to open the fucking door like a moron," I say. Nepeta's brows furrowed as she put her fists on her hips.

"Give him a chance, Karkitty! Equius is really strong, you know," she says. I cross my arms.

"Would you stop with the 'Karkitty' crap already? My name isn't mean for your stupid cat puns," I said a little too harshly. Nepeta became quiet for a moment, looking down at the ground sadly.

"I-I'm sorry," she says softly. I smacked my forehead. Now I just looked like a fucking douchebag.

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you," I started placing a hand on her shoulder so she would look back up. "I'm just stressed out, and I'm taking it out on you, even though that isn't fair." Nepeta gave me a soft, reassuring smile after I finished my apology.

"I think we are all a little stressed, Karkat," she turns around. "Come on, let's get back to Equius." She looks back at me. "Oh, and apology accepted!" And with that, we both ran back to the entrance hall. I sighed in relief as we went back- I was lucky she was able to forgive me so quickly. The last thing I needed was to make a girl cry on top of this whole fucking situation.

It wasn't long before we had made it back. Equius was knelt over, his hands on his knees as he panted heavily. Nepeta ran up to him first, placing a hand on his shoulder as she examined him.

"It's no use. I cannot open it," Equius says apologetically. I rolled my eyes.

"Well duh, it's made of fucking iron," I say to him. Equius pulls the towel from his shoulder, and dabs away the sweat that had formed on his head as he stood up straight.

"I have the strength of a thousand horses," he says. "My strength surpasses that of the average human being. Even with strength such as mine, I cannot pry this iron door open in the slightest."

"At least you tried though," Nepeta says. "There isn't really anything in this area, except more security cameras, and the barred off stairs."

"Barred off stairs?" Equius asked, sounding a bit intrigued.

"There's no point in going back. There is no way to get those fucking stairs open," I answered. "Nepeta and I checked."

"Perhaps we could check out another part of the school, then?" Equius suggested. We left after that, heading back towards the cafeteria. We had yet to meet up with anyone else, and there was still plenty of time before we had to report back to the rest of the group.

The hour had passed quickly, and we didn't find much of anything else in the cafeteria. Pretty soon, everyone had returned, and was sitting at the meeting table.

"Is everyone here?" Terezi had asked, standing up at one end of the table.

"Obviously not. That novelist isn't here, can't you see that?" Eridan sneered. Terezi stared straight ahead.

"No," she said as Feferi gave Eridan a swift punch across his shoulder.

"She was with us, but at some point she had disappeared," Jade said, shrugging a bit. Terezi sniffed.

"Well, we are going to have to start without her. Now, has anyone found anything during their investigations?" The attorney begins. "Gamzee, how about you and your groups share first?"

"Sure thing, motherfucker," Gamzee started. I felt my face scowl at the clown for a second. For some reason, I was a bit bothered that Terezi had chosen him to speak first.

"I was with Tavbro, Aradia and that computer motherfucker-"

"Sollux," Aradia said.

"Yeah, him," Gamzee ran his fingers through his mess of black hair before continuing. "We were all up in the motherfucking dormitory over there."

"We, uh, discovered that, uh, everyone has their own private room designated for them," Tavros continued.

"There's a nameplate on every door, meaning everyone is already assigned a room," Aradia added. "Everyone also gets their own key for said room."

"That's not all. All of the rooms are completely sound proof. Gamzee and Tavros confirmed that," Sollux says. Gamzee chuckles.

"Hell yeah, motherfucker. I made some wicked noise over there, but no one heard a peep," The juggalo says, honking a horn that had suddenly appeared in his hands. Terezi grimaced at the noise.

"Where the heck did you get a horn from?" Terezi asked. Gamzee shrugs, despite her not being able to see it.

"Miracles, sister," he says. I looked at him.

"That doesn't even make any sense, you fucking idiot," I stated.

"Everything makes sense when you have miracles, bro," Gamzee says to me. I was going to say something else, but I was stopped by Equius.

"Please, may we continue?" He says. I blew a raspberry between my lips and lowered by head onto the table.

"We also clean showers, which is nice," Aradia says with a smile. "However, the notes within our state that only the girl's bathrooms can be locked."

"How iiiiiiiinteresting," Vriska says, her words heavy with sarcasm. Aradia glanced over.

"Oh, I'm sorry Vriska. I forgot that you probably don't even use showers. I'm sorry for boring you," Aradia comments, using the same amount of sarcasm as the super high school level luck had used. Immediately, Vriska sat up, her blue eyes blazing with anger.

"_Excuse me_?" She yells, already rolling up her sleeves. Aradia just sits calmly, watching as Vriska attempted to climb over the table in order to punch the medium in the face. However, Vriska was knocked over as Terezi swung her walking cane at her, her red glasses glinting in the florescent light.

"We have enough to deal with without you causing any more trouble," she says. Vriska glared at her step-sister.

"Oh, so it's my entire fault now? She's the one who started it!" Vriska says as she points an accusing finger at Aradia. Aradia had an innocent look on her face, as she had no clue about what had happened just a second ago.

"Don't you sit there with an innocent look-"

"Vriska, if you wish to talk, why don't you go ahead and share what you have found?" Kanaya chimes in, as if to ease up the tension. Vriska blew a piece of her hair out of her face as she crossed her arms like a child.

"Fine. Unlike the rest of you, I tried to actually find something useful," she says. "I went looking for leads on the culprit who locked all of us in here. I couldn't find anything, though." Vriska stopped speaking, and we all sat in silence.

"… Is that it?" Kanaya asked. Vriska scowled.

"Of course that is it, Ms. Fussyfangs. I said I couldn't find anything, didn't I?"

"… Fussyfangs?" Kanaya pondered. Kanaya was as pale as your average vampire, and her canines did seem a tad sharper than that of the average person. However, Vriska would have to have really checked Kanaya out before to notice such a thing. I only noticed after her little nickname.

"Well, I guess it's our turn," Feferi says, standing up beside Eridan and Kanaya. "We searched around the school area, looking at all the metal covering the windows and such."

"There is absolutely no way out of them. Not one of them would budge," Eridan said. "It seems as though we truly are trapped in here."

"We also did not find any sort of way to contact the outside world," Feferi said. She sounded as if she was about to cry. She placed a hand over her mouth and looked away, as if she was trying hard to hold in the tears.

"Equius, Nepeta, and I went back to the entrance hall," I began. I wasn't going to sit around much longer without saying a word. "Equius tried to pry the iron door open, but it's obvious that didn't fucking work."

"It is also forbidden to touch that door anymore," Equius cuts in. "While Karkat and Nepeta were looking elsewhere, and Caliborn had shown up and told me that the next time I try to take down that door, those guns were going to fire," he said. Nepeta and I looked at him with big eyes.

"I don't remember that coming up when we came back," I exclaim.

"When did that happen, Equius?" Nepeta asks. Equius dabbed his forehead with the towel once again.

"When you and Karkat had left, as I had said," he answers. "I did not tell you at the time so you would not worry."

"And you didn't think I wasn't going to worry now?" Nepeta snapped. Equius frowned.

"Nepeta, it is very rude to use that kind of tone when speaking to your classmates," he informs her.

"Wait, you said he was in the entrance hallway?" Jade asks, tilting her to the side in question.

"Yes. He appeared suddenly, informed me of the situation, and then sped off just before these two had returned," He says as he had gestured towards me and Nepeta. Nepeta still looked a little pissed at him, and I ended up scooting my chair a few inches back in case the claws came out.

"Well, that's a little strange," Jade says. John nods in agreement.

"Yeah, because he was in the kitchen with us," he said, referring to Dave and Jade as he did. Equius raised his brows.

"He did? Such amazing speed he has," Equius thought as he began to sweat faster. "A mere puppet that is actually an elusive weapon… such an exquisite design."

"How's about you put your brows back where they belong and sit your ass back down?" I barked. Equius turned to me, and right away I knew I had screwed myself over.

"Now, listen here lowblood-" he started, just as a hand had placed itself on his chest and pushed him back. I looked up, seeing that it was Gamzee who had stepped between us. The clown had a drunken smile as he gives Equius a re-assuring look.

"Come on Equibro, let's all just chill out here and listen to what these other motherfuckers have to say," he says. To my amazement, Equius obeys, sitting down in his seat quietly as if nothing had happened. I gawked at the both of them, wondering what kind of connection those two had for the engineer to obey so easily, and I also wanted to know what the fuck he meant by "Lowblood." I didn't get the chance to ask once John began to speak again.

"Anyway, he appeared once we started to go through the fridge," John said. At this time, Dave decided to speak up.

"Yeah, we were checking our food supply and shit," he says. "We are pretty well stocked up- got a lot of everything by the looks of it. Then the puppet comes flying in out of nowhere and informs us that our food supply is always being restocked, so there is no need to worry about starving, apparently." I think that was the most amount of words that guy has spoken all day.

"That's about all we found there though. Caliborn left right after that," Jade finishes. Suddenly, Nepeta suddenly jumps up.

"Wait! AC and Karkitty didn't get to finish our report," She says suddenly. I gave her a look.

"Who the fuck is AC?" I said. I decided to ignore the "Karkitty" this time. Nepeta blushes, bringing her hands close to her mouth.

"I'm sorry, that's my role-playing name," she says before turning back to the group. "Karki- _Karkat _and I found some stairs leading to a second floor."

"They were barred off though, so we can't go up there," I continued. "We looked for a switch, although we didn't find anything."

"But that doesn't mean there isn't a pawsibility that we won't have access later!" Nepeta adds on finally. Terezi nods.

"This is good information," she says.

"But it's not enough," Eridan denounces.

"Alright, you buzzkill," Sollux retorts. Eridan slams his hands on the table, standing up as he did.

"We may have food, and rooms to sleep in, and maybe even clean bathrooms, but don't forget we are still stuck in this hellhole!" He yells. We were all taken back by his attention to the reality at hand, and it was only the voice of the missing girl to bring us back into reality.

"You are all so noisy, you know?" Rose says as she suddenly appears behind Eridan. The super High School Level Scientist immediately jumped, twirling around in surprise at the grim novelist.

"What the- where the hell did you come from?" He exclaims.

"Yeah Rose, where did you go?" Jade asks. Rose did not answer right away, and instead threw a piece of paper onto the table. My eyes widened at the printing on the paper.

"Is that-"

"The floor plans for this school," she finishes for me. "I found them through my own private investigation."

"Where the fuck did you find these?" I asked, looking over the carefully drawn lines. Rose was quiet for a second.

"Does that really matter?" She says.

"It kind of does," Kanaya says with a grim look on her face. Rose smiled at her, although she continued to avoid the question.

"These are the plans for the first floor only. Unfortunately, I could not find the plans for the second, or any other floors for that matter," she says. "These clues do tell us that we are, in fact, in Hope's Peak academy."

"W-wait, for real? We weren't dragged off to some other place?" Tavros exclaims, a look of fear in his eyes.

"Yes. This is real," Rose answers as she gently takes the paper from my hands. I pouted, sinking in my seat a bit.

"Well, that's fucking fantastic. We are stuck in the one place that wasn't supposed to suck, yet here we are like sitting ducks," I groaned. Kanaya glances up at the clock on the wall.

"It is almost night time," she says.

"Why, yes it is. It would be best for everyone to get some sleep before tomorrow," Terezi says as she nods her head, her red hair bobbing back and forth.

"Wait! Before we go, I still have one last question," Feferi suddenly speaks up. Her eyes were no longer in tears, but now shone with question.

"Yes, Ms. Feferi?" Terezi asks. Feferi held up her ID card, tapping on a few things before she spoke again.

"I have a question about rule number six," she says. "It says that a culprit can graduate as long as the other students don't know. What is that supposed to mean exactly?"

"It means if you kill someone, you don't want anyone to find out," Vriska sneered. Feferi frowns.

"W-what do you mean?"

"Oooooooobviously, there is some punishment for the dumb idiots who can't hide their evidence very well, so if you kill, you better make it clean," Vriska continues. Terezi now frowns.

"What kind of punishment are you talking about, exactly?" She asks. Vriska smiled at her- a cruel, twisted smile that meant only bad things were going to come out of her trap.

"Well, 'Blind Justice'," Vriska starts. "I guess we will find out eventually, won't we?"

* * *

**Here's the update I promised! I'm sorry it was posted so late, but the internet went down for a while after I had finished it. Next update will be here tomorrow.**

**Please review and let me know what you think! Posting four chapters in four days is a lot of hard work you know!**


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